Death's Promise
by Banshee0
Summary: [In Progress] Set in AC 203 - After Duo dies, he finds a way to come back. But why? Because Heero has something with him that's originally Duo's; and he want's it back - among other things. [1x2x1 shonen ai] B-Day-Fic for Lora Helen
1. Author's Notes, Warning and Disclaimer

I know that everybody says that but IMPORTANT, PLEASE READ!  
  
Before starting with the story, I'd like to state, that this is a HAPPY BIRTHDAY story for Lora Helen, who is no longer just my beta-reader but now officially my muse as well! ^_^  
  
Since the happenings in this story are supposed to be a surprise for Lora, I did NOT let her BETA it. Thus there wasn't any proof-reading going on and the possibility is even higher than usual that you'll stumble across typos or other errors. Deal with it! ^_~  
  
This story is the very first GW story I started. That was about half a year ago and it was in German. Now I stripped it down to the original plot and completely redid it in English and in just three days! I'm quite proud of that fact! ^_^v  
  
I got inspired to write this by reading too much GW fiction and being bored to tears during class after watching 'City Of Angels' the evening before. Strange as it is, but that's really what happened... ^_^"  
  
Since it's a b-day story for Lora, this is DEDICATED TO her. Happy Birthday, luv! I hope you have a totally great b-day and like this story! *tackleglomp* ^_^  
  
The story's timeline starts on November 17th and will end on December 24th, making it this year's Christmas story as well as Lora's b-day story.  
  
As for WARNINGS: It's yaoi / shonen ai / slash / male x male / guys liking guys or whatever else you call it! 1x2x1 to be exact. I put a warning up, if you don't like this kind of stuff and you continue anyway, it's your own fault.  
  
And the last thing is the DISCLAIMER: I don't own GW or it's characters. I don't own the song, not even the lyrics. And I don't own City Of Angels. *pouts* But I do own the plot, so hands off! ^_~  
  
- Banshee 


	2. Prologue

And I say it again: B-day story for Lora! ^_^ I hope you like, hun!  
  
- Banshee  
  
- - - - -  
  
Death's Promise - Prologue  
  
- - - - -  
  
A few years had passed since the last war had been fought and the Gundams had been destroyed. But the five former Gundam pilots still hadn't parted ways. In fact, they were even sharing a house on Earth. Not all five of them lived there on a regular basis, seeing as some of them had jobs that sent them all over Earth and the Colonies.  
  
- - - - -  
  
November 17th, AC 203  
  
- - - - -  
  
The former Gundam pilots had gathered in the living room of their house - Heero sitting in an armchair, typing away on his laptop, Trowa and Quatre on the couch, watching a movie and Wufei sitting on the floor, his legs folded underneath him and sharpening his katana.  
  
Duo had left the house a few hours ago, claiming that it was 'too boring here' and all of them were 'no fun'. Fact was that nobody had been able to keep up with Duo anymore after he had consumed his eighth cup of coffee and a bunch of chocolate bars. Now they were enjoying the peace and quiet while it lasted, knowing that once Duo got back, he would probably continue to try and pester them into 'doing something'.  
  
Sometimes they didn't know where he got the energy from. Even with all the sugar and caffeine he consumed, the phenomena of endless energy usually only occurred around little children and over-protective mothers. Last time they checked, Duo was neither.  
  
Suddenly the TV went black for a few moments, startling Trowa and Quatre, the only ones who were really paying attention to what happened on the screen at that time. When the picture came back, it had changed.  
  
/We are sorry to have to interrupt the current program but we just received important news,/ the newscaster, who was now on instead of the movie, told them.  
  
This got Wufei to raise his head up from where he had been concentrated on his sword, and watch the happenings on the TV screen as well.  
  
/A few minutes ago a mall in the center of the city exploded. The reason was a bomb, placed in the building. The mall and other buildings in the near vicinity have been totally destroyed or greatly damaged. We don't know the whole extent of this catastrophe yet but it seems as if nobody has been killed and only few people were injured. We have to thank a young man for this. For some reason he knew of the bomb and arranged for the evacuation of the buildings. Oh, one moment, please! I just got some new information.../  
  
The newscaster touched a hand to his headset while he was apparently listening to what was told to him.  
  
/Unfortunately I have to correct what I said earlier. I just received news that there now is the death of one person confirmed. I'm sorry to hear that the young man, who has saved the lives of all the people, who would without him have been in the building when it exploded, got killed. It still is unclear how he even knew about the bomb but it seems like he went back into the mall after everybody was evacuated. We think that he wanted to try and keep the bomb from exploding but unfortunately he was to late. I was told that the explosion threw him out through on of the windows before the building collapsed but he was killed when he hit the ground... I just heard that by now his identity has been confirmed./  
  
The attention of four former Gundam pilots was now fixed onto the TV screen.  
  
/It's the pilot of the Gundam Deathscyhte, Duo Maxw-/  
  
Trowa had switched off the TV and now an uneasy silence spread in the room.  
  
"That can't be true..." Quatre finally whispered in a dead voice.  
  
Nobody answered him but all of them agreed: Duo Maxwell couldn't be dead. I just wasn't possible.  
  
The police officers that arrived at their house not fifteen minutes later told them differently.  
  
- - - - -  
  
To be continued  
  
- - - - -  
  
Please leave a review on your way out. Thank you! ^_^  
  
- Banshee 


	3. Chapter 01

To Hotaru Muraki:  
  
Well, your review is the first one, so I guess there are some 'Special Thanks' for you in order... ^_~  
  
Other than that I wanted to tell you that your review certainly is the most interesting not-review-that-turned-into-a-review I ever got. I hope you get the meaning behind this rather random comment, even if I probably lost everybody else. ^_^"  
  
And yes, I killed Duo... T.T  
  
I absolutely don't like to write deathfics. I felt incredibly guilty for killing off Duo in another story for about a whole month or so - this story is kinda my way to apologize to him. You'll have to read to find out if he'll come back, tough! ^_~  
  
Last, me 'loves' cliffies. You wanna know why? Because they make people come back! Or at least that's what I keep telling myself... ^_^"  
  
I'll stop babbling now and let you read the next chapter! ^_^  
  
- Banshee  
  
- - - - -  
  
Death's Promise - Chapter 01  
  
- - - - -  
  
December 15th, AC 203: One Month Later  
  
-  
  
Heero woke up to the feeling of somebody watching him.  
  
A glance at the digital clock beside his bed told him that it was around half past two in the morning and a second glance around the room caused him to doubt his instincts.  
  
He was alone.  
  
The moonlight that illuminated the room was bright enough for Heero to spot every kind of intruder instantly, if there was one, especially since there was nowhere to hide, either.  
  
But even though he couldn't see anybody, Heero still felt like being watched and the feeling was too intense to be just his usual soldier's paranoia. Thus there 'had' to be someone or something in the room with him, even if he didn't see anything wrong at the moment.  
  
'Usually, I'd blame it on Duo trying to sneak up on me, even if he should know that he's not very likely to succeed. But this time it can't possibly be him...' Heero added as a bitter afterthought as he once again remembered that he'd never see Duo again.  
  
Loud.  
  
Annoying.  
  
'Extremely' stubborn.  
  
Dead.  
  
'Yes, damnit! I admit that I miss him!'  
  
Heero knew that it wouldn't help to think about Duo right now. He had to take care of that feeling of being stared at first, since it hadn't vanished on it's own while he had been talking to himself in his head.  
  
On the contrary, it had gotten much stronger.  
  
Even though Heero knew that it wouldn't do any good, because he knew that there was no place in the room where somebody could possibly hide, he got out of the bed and switched the light on to take a second and better look at the room now that it was properly illuminated.  
  
And in the very moment, the light was turned on, the feeling of being watched was gone.  
  
'If I'm not already insane, I'm certainly on the best way there now...'  
  
Heero turned the light off again and started to get back into bed, intending to dismiss everything as some strange half-dream as suddenly...  
  
~Thanks a bunch! I don't like too bright light all that much recently. Makes me look pale.~  
  
Tensing, Heero spun around, ready to take out everyone, who was stupid enough to try and attack him, but he was met by a room that was as empty as before. He still was the only person around. But he had heard a voice from near the window just moments ago and that voice had sounded too real to be an imagination. And somehow the voice had even sounded familiar.  
  
~Heh, I hope so. I certainly made sure you heard it quite a bit every chance I got. If you'd forgotten me that quickly I'd be sulking!~  
  
Heero decided that he was 'not' going to talk to bodiless voices at strange hours of the night. He got back into bed, pulled the blanket over his body and turned his back to the window, which seemed to be the source of the voice.  
  
"Oof!"  
  
Apparently even bodiless voices didn't like to be ignored because Heero hadn't been in bed again for more then ten seconds as his laptop came flying and hit him right on the head.  
  
'Now' Heero was mad.  
  
Waking him in the middle of the night was something he could ignore. Hallucinations he could ignore. But 'nobody' used his laptop as a flying projectile against him.  
  
Bodiless or not, somebody would get hurt for this.  
  
But as he, his laptop pressed against his chest in a protective manner, kicked the blanket off and turned towards the window, he forgot about every homicidal thought that had been coursing around in his head. He just sat there on his bed, his mouth hanging open and his eyes wide in shock.  
  
"What the..." was after almost a minute the most intelligent thing he could come up with.  
  
Not even two meters away from him, a figure was standing in front of the window. All he could see was the figures frame, not due to the lacking of light but because there wasn't much more to see. The moonlight shone right through the body, but was at the same time reflected by it, making it seem as if the person in front of him was in constant flowing motion.  
  
~You should turn on some kinda light. Can't be healthy to be staring at me in the dark for so long without blinking. But not the whole over-bright stuff again, the bedside light would do just fine.~  
  
Heero did as he was asked without even thinking about it. He still was in a state one couldn't find him in very often: Speechless and totally out of it. He thought it confusing enough to have a figure like that in his room to begin with but by now he even had a suspicion what, or rather 'who' it was.  
  
And this suspicion turned out to be true as the dim light of the bedside lamp illuminated the room.  
  
~Hi, Heero!~ Duo grinned at him cheerfully.  
  
"Hn..."  
  
Heero had found his composure again. Even if he was hallucinating, that didn't mean that he had to make a complete idiot out of himself in front of said hallucination by staring at it with his mouth hanging open.  
  
~Don't start 'that' up again! Right now I really don't feel like decoding your Hn-speech. I'm annoyed enough as it is.~  
  
A raised eyebrow was Heero's only reaction. He had come to terms with the situation rather quickly. It didn't look like he could do anything against it anyway. And didn't matter if he was being delusional or if he actually was talking to someone who was supposed to be dead: Getting rid of Duo against his will always had been and always will be something not even worth trying.  
  
~Yeah, imagine that. 'Me' being annoyed. I know that it's usually me who does the annoying but somehow dying seems to be able to get your mood down...~  
  
This got Heero's attention.  
  
"You know that you are dead? I think that means you're no hallucination," he mumbled, more to himself than anything else.  
  
~Heero! Don't you dare start analyse my situation, or I'll go berserk on ya! I'm dead, that's idiotic enough as it is, I don't need a rational explanation for it that tells everybody how I still can be here and talking to you, 'cause there's no such explanation, so don't even start trying, 'kay?~  
  
"No matter, what's going on, you still talk as much as before. Can I now go back to sleep?"  
  
~No!~  
  
"Thought so..."  
  
Silence.  
  
~You don't wanna know how I can be here? It's nothing rational but at least it's an explanation.~  
  
"Hn..."  
  
~'Hn' what?~  
  
"Do I have a choice?"  
  
~Nope!~ Duo told him, grinning brightly.  
  
- - - - -  
  
To be continued  
  
- - - - -  
  
I hope that wasn't too bad a place to stop.  
  
And I don't know about you, who read this, but for some strange reason this story creeps me out. I really don't know why that is, though. But if you think something about it is weird, then you are not alone - or maybe it's just me... O.o  
  
Now there's this nice button below - Please click it to make it feel appreciated. And writing me a review won't hurt, either! ^_~  
  
- Banshee 


	4. Chapter 02

Alright! Me back! And I brought a new chappie along! ^_~  
  
Like always: Thanks to all those who reviewed the story so far.  
  
To silvermoonstar-tenshi: I always try to throw a bit humour into my stories, no matter what the actual plot is, but I had no idea that 'this' story has the potential to make anybody (quote) grinning like a fool (unquote)... Seems like I'm still able to do stuff without knowing that I do them, go me! ^_~  
  
To Lora Helen: YOU should not talk about bad places to stop! Because YOU are the Goddess of evil cliff hangers! *lol* Nevermind... ^_^ I hope this is 'updated soon' enough for you *checks time* Ya, 2h 30min... I'm good, I just needed over two hours to read through this chap. And make coffee. And get something to eat. And play with my Neopet... Have I ever mentioned that I'm easily distracted? *lol*  
  
This chapter is basically about what happened to make it possible for Duo to still be around... a.k.a. Duo's talking a LOT! *grin*  
  
I'll stop babbling now. Enjoy the chapter!  
  
- Banshee  
  
- - - - -  
  
Death's Promise - Chapter 02  
  
- - - - -  
  
Heero put his laptop down on the floor beside his bed and made himself comfortable.  
  
'And about you throwing my laptop at me, we'll talk later,' he growled mentally.  
  
"So, why are you still here?" was what he asked aloud but the answer he got rather surprised him.  
  
~No!~  
  
"Huh?"  
  
Duo had never been one for logical lines of thought but this was even more random than usually.  
  
~No, I did not throw your laptop at you. At least not intentionally. I was a bit pissed, because you obviously tried to ignore me once again and suddenly the comp went flying. But I hadn't planned it than way or anything... I can't even touch stuff, things just start flying around when I get upset or something.~  
  
"Wait a moment! Are you reading my thoughts?" Heero asked warily.  
  
~Uhm... well... kinda... yes... But just if they have something to do with me or are directed at me.~ Duo quickly added before Heero could get mad at him. ~And I'm not really talking to you, either. It's more like sending my voice directly into your brain or something like that. I wasn't really paying attention...~  
  
"Hn. Don't try to change the topic. Just stop it, alright? I don't like the idea of you rummaging around in my thoughts."  
  
Heero glared at Duo to emphasise this point and got an agreeing nod from the supposed-to-be dead man.  
  
"Fine. Again, why are you here?" And after hesitating for a moment: "You aren't an angel, are you?"  
  
This explanation was as good as any other Heero could come up with at the moment. But if Duo was really an angel now, his outfit didn't match that at all, even if it made it hard for Heero to not simply sit there and stare.  
  
Just like usual, Duo was dressed all in black. But he was not wearing his priest's outfit. A black, half-transparent shirt with a turtleneck hugged his upper body and tight black jeans hug low on his hips. Over this he wore a long black coat that flowed around him. His feet were bare.  
  
With all this black clothing Duo wore, one wasn't really reminded of an angel, looking at him, but the wings that were folded behind his back did the job. They weren't white, like one would usually imagine angel's wings, but they weren't black, either. The wings were even more transparent then Duo's body, making them look as if they were made out of fragile glass. The feathers were a dark colour and had a faint shimmer of blue and silver to them.  
  
But what fascinated Heero the most was Duo's hair. He had already seen it out of the usually braid while Duo was still alive but only on a few occasions and not on a regular basis. But now, Duo's hair was undone, flowing around him in a wave of chestnut light and nearly reaching the floor. Small black braids, looking as if they were just three separate hairs woven together, could be seen in the mass of chestnut hair. To the ends of these braids tiny black bells were attached, tinkling softly with every movement Duo made.  
  
~An angel?~ Heero's observations were interrupted by Duo's voice. ~No, I'm not. I'm what I always claimed to be. Shinigami. Or something like that. Not really, though. Why do you think, I'm an angel?~  
  
The answer to this question really interested Duo. For some reason it seemed even more important to him than the fact that he was indeed dead, and he had his mind set on getting an answer. But Heero didn't feel like doing him this favour right now.  
  
"What do you mean by 'Shinigami'? Are you running around, killing people by touching them or what?"  
  
~No! I told you that I'm not really, totally Shinigami, just somehow. He doesn't really exist, at least not like I always imagined him to exist. There isn't just 'one' Shinigami but tons of them. And now I'm one, too.~  
  
"Could you please tell me everything and not just bits and pieces? This is getting a tad confusing..." Heero made his voice sound more annoyed than he actually felt.  
  
'Blessed be the short attention span of Duo Maxwell. If he'd have demanded an answer to the question why I thought him to be an angel, things could have gotten a bit embarrassing for me.'  
  
~U-hu... Yer right! I think it'd be best to start at the beginning. Well, I died, didn't I? I didn't really believe that there'd be something after death but somehow I still wasn't all that surprised when someone started talking at me.  
  
~I mean, there had to be 'something' after death and if only because lotsa people would get really mad if they just died and were gone after believing all their life that they wouldn't just die and be done with it. Don't you think so as well?~  
  
Heero didn't bother to answer, since Duo just talked on as if he hadn't just asked a question, anyway.  
  
'Duo-Logic,' he thought bemused.  
  
~Whatever, suddenly there was this weird voice. At that moment I though: 'Well, there's only two possibilities: God or Devil', who you could call Shinigami if you're not picky and 'cause I never liked the first one all that much I just thought that it would be my 'alter ego'.  
  
~Should have known that things aren't that easy, even if you're already dead and one would think, you have enough problems as it is. Can you believe it? God doesn't exist and Shinigami has spilt personalities, lots of them at that!  
  
~Anyway, whoever thought that he had to talk to me after I just died, asked me if I really wanted to die. I don't want to criticise or anything but how stupid can you get? What kind of question is that? 'Sorry, but do you mind dying right now?' 'Why, of course not! Go on and kill me!' But then this guy started explaining the whole thing.  
  
~Seems like there's a difference between dying physically and really dying, as in being totally deleted, soul and everything. If you choose to 'not' die you get to be a Shinigami and since I'm here, you can already guess what I've chosen.  
  
~I was already bored with being 'not really' dead, so why bother and 'really' die? Could only get less interesting. And since I always told myself and everyone else that I'm Shinigami, why not make it true? This way I can still have some fun and annoy people, you for example.  
  
~And becoming a Shinigami isn't difficult at all. You just have to say 'Yes, I wanna be a Shinigami' and you get to be one. Well, not everybody is asked to become one, though. Like persons who'd just go around kill off people all over the place, psycho guys with beam canons and giant robots that make them go berserk, chicks with an obsession for strange colours and so on, but that's beside the point.  
  
~If you get to be a Shinigami you have the power to take lives, but just those of people who are supposed to die because their time is over for some reason or another. But you don't even have to do that. If I want I can do as I please, giving me my own 'mission' for being alive again.~  
  
Before Duo could start talking again, Heero cut him off and asked with something akin to awe: "I know that since you're already dead, you can't die from lack of oxygen. But can't you at least pretend to have to breath and pause every now and then while talking?"  
  
~No, why?~ was the answer.  
  
Duo tried to look innocent. Heero wasn't fooled for one second.  
  
"Hn."  
  
~But now it's your turn: Why did you think I was an angel?~ Duo wanted to know, plain curiosity written in his eyes. ~Even if I'm not, I still wanna know.~  
  
Heero had hoped that Duo had already forgotten about that, the way he had been running his mouth, but he should have known better. If Duo 'really' wanted to know something, he wouldn't stop pestering you about it until you broke down and told him.  
  
But Heero had no intention of telling Duo the truth and he couldn't think of a believable lie at the moment. Thus he did what he always did in situations like these: He ignored Duo and went back to bed. Even though that caused Duo to curse, plead and generally 'not' shut up, Heero was asleep not five minutes later.  
  
- - - - -  
  
To be continued  
  
- - - - -  
  
*trying to think of something to say*  
  
(silence)  
  
Butterflies are evil. They killed my brain. Please review.  
  
*stares*  
  
Forget I just said that. But please still review. ^_^"  
  
- Banshee 


	5. Chapter 03

Hiya!  
  
I don't have much to say this time, so I'll just go through the reviews of the last chapter... ^_^  
  
Ellen: I'm glad you like it. As I said before, I wasn't really intending to make the story a humour one but I'm getting more and more reviews that tell me that it's funny. I like that! ^_~  
  
DaughterofDeath: Done. Happy? ^_^"  
  
Karen McCoy: I thought it was funny too but the way you make it sound, it's even funnier! ^_~  
  
andrea: I will! ^_^v P.S: One sentence reviews are the most fun ones! Well, sometimes... ^_^"  
  
I hope you all are going to like the new chapter!  
  
- Banshee  
  
- - - - -  
  
Chapter 03  
  
- - - - -  
  
December 16th, AC 203  
  
-  
  
Heero groaned and turned to lie on his stomach, pulling the blanket over his head to drown out the daylight. He definitely did 'not' want to get up yet. He was still tired.  
  
'Not enough sleep...'  
  
Something had caused him to wake up in the middle of the night, he remembered. But his brain was still half-asleep and he just couldn't recall what exactly had happened.  
  
He let out a frustrated growl to give the world a warning that he was so not going to be a happy person today. If he ever managed to force himself out of bed, that was.  
  
Suddenly something fell onto the bed next to his blanket-covered head. Surprised, Heero lifted the blanked up to see what it was and was met by his laptop.  
  
Something about this felt familiar.  
  
"Duo! Would you stop messing around with my laptop?" he ground out, his irritation over being awake in the first place starting to grow into being 'really' annoyed at generally everything.  
  
'Wait a moment... Duo?'  
  
Heero was wide awake within less then a second and jumped out of bed, scanning his room for any sign of the other man. But he was alone.  
  
'Slight sense of deja-vu here...'  
  
After picking up his laptop and putting it away he raised a hand to his eyes and rubbed them while he wondered if everything had just been a weird dream. Things were starting to get a bit frustrating, he decided.  
  
Then suddenly something that sounded suspiciously like a battle cry could be heard only seconds before Duo came falling though the ceiling, landing right in the middle of Heero's bed.  
  
Heero stared.  
  
Duo realized that Heero wasn't in bed anymore and his highly dramatic tackle to wake up the other had gone to waste.  
  
Heero was immensely grateful that he had not been in bed during Duo's impact. Convinced that he hadn't dreamed last night's happenings, he continued to stare.  
  
Getting comfortable on the bed, Duo grinned at Heero as if he hadn't just tried to semi-attack him in his sleep.  
  
Seemed as if he was in quite a good mood for somebody who was dead.  
  
He was still wearing the same clothes as before, just that his coat was gone, making visible that his shirt was a sleeveless one. What had changed as well was that Duo's wings were now gone.  
  
~Morning, Heero! Slept well? Not feeling guilty 'cause of ignoring me last night? Hadn't thought so!~  
  
Even while saying this, Duo didn't loose his grin. And after sitting still for about ten seconds he started bouncing up and down in the bed.  
  
'Yes, definitely in a good mood.'  
  
"Hn."  
  
Heero turned his back at the still bouncing Duo and started to walk toward the door to the bathroom, that was attached to his room.  
  
When dealing with a hyper Duo always try to get away as fast as possible or it's highly possible that he'll involve you into whatever he is scheming.  
  
Heero had already opened the door as a thought crossed his mind and caused him to turn around to face Duo again.  
  
"Is everybody able to see you?"  
  
~Everybody I want to be able to see me,~ Duo explained between two jumps.  
  
"And are you going to let anyone but me see you?"  
  
This brought a sudden stop to Duo's bouncing.  
  
~No,~ he replied.  
  
The answer was a bit of a surprise for Heero. Why would Duo show himself to only him and not at least the other former Gundam pilots as well?  
  
"Why not?"  
  
~Because!~  
  
And with that Duo literally dissolved into thin air, leaving Heero to stare at the suddenly empty spot on his bed and wonder just what this had been about.  
  
- - - - -  
  
While Heero was making breakfast for himself, Duo was sitting on the roof of the house, thinking.  
  
Of course Heero had to ask that question out of everything else he could have wanted to know. Now it was up to Duo, to find a way to avoid answering the question without making it look as if he was avoiding it. Not that just vanishing like he had was the best way to do that.  
  
Duo sighed and started to play with one of the bells in his hair. He couldn't help but grin at the memory of the look on Heero's face last night as he realized just who was standing in front of him.  
  
~Alright, so maybe I overdid it a bit with the outfit.~ Duo chuckled.  
  
He closed his eyes and concentrated. Soon his body was glowing in a soft silver light and his hair started weaving itself into a braid. The bells vanished and a black ribbon appeared instead, wrapping itself around the end of the braid.  
  
~Much better!~ Duo stated ~Stupid hair kept getting in my way. Now what am I going to wear today?~  
  
After a few moments of thinking, Duo decided and the clothes he was wearing started to change into different ones. When he was done, he reopened his eyes and the glow disappeared, leaving Duo in dark blue jeans and a black shirt.  
  
~The luxury of being Shinigami!~ he cheered. ~And now back to work...~  
  
- - - - -  
  
Heero was sitting at the kitchen table, staring into the cup of coffee that was standing in front of him. He was trying to figure out what exactly was going on and how he should react to it.  
  
At the moment he was the only one living in the house, the other three men being gone because of their work. This meant that he didn't have to worry about them knowing that Duo was alive... well, not dead, again. But Duo's reaction when he asked him about letting the others know hade made him think.  
  
He wasn't sure what to make of Duo suddenly coming back from the dead and then choosing 'him' of all people to be the only one able to see him.  
  
'I wonder if he knows...'  
  
- - - - -  
  
To be continued  
  
- - - - -  
  
I just 'know' that there will be complaining about ending it here...  
  
Cliff-hangers are the author's best friend! *cackles*  
  
Please review! It makes me want to update sooner. Honest! ^_~  
  
- Banshee 


	6. Chapter 04

To Karen McCoy: *shudders* Don't you ever mention the words 'Heero', 'Relena' and 'married' in one sentence again! I couldn't sleep for two nights because of the nightmares you gave me with that! *glares* But thanks for the review! ^_~  
  
To Ellen: *megasweatdrop* I... uhm... I'll do my best... But this is a 'romance' story so there will be some sap and stuff. I don't like them being (quote) sappy, crying, little is-a-boy-seem-to-be-an-overly-romantic- girl (unquote) *loves that definition! lol* as well, so I guess it will not get 'that' bad... At least I hope I managed to keep them 'macho-ish' enough... Well, maybe not macho-ish but not girlish, either... Is this still making sense? I think I'll shut up now before I confuse myself... ^_^" What I wanted to say is, that I hope you like the way I write the guys even if things might get a bit sappy soon... ^_~  
  
This chap is a bit strange, to my opinion... Then again I think the whole story is somewhat weird, so don't listen to me... I'm currently being rambled at by a friend who found great interest in 'Berserk' manga and he keeps distracting me... -.-" ^_^"  
  
What I'm trying to get at is, that some might think this chap is somewhat angsty... And I thought I'd tell you... ^_^"  
  
Enjoy!  
  
- Banshee  
  
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Chapter 04  
  
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Heero was still sitting in the kitchen, thinking everything over as suddenly Duo materialized with a highly annoyed look on his face.  
  
"Where is it?" he demanded to know. "I know that you took it but I can't find it anywhere in your room! Give it back!"  
  
Duo started pacing around in the kitchen, occasionally shooting glares at Heero and obviously waiting for an answer. The dark-haired man decided to play dumb and delay the inevitable discussion of 'how?' and 'why?' that was sure to follow.  
  
"What are you talking about?"  
  
The next thing Heero knew was that every drawer and cupboard in the kitchen were thrown open by an invisible force and their contents came flying at him. He barely managed to dive under the desk before some knives impaled themselves in the wall behind the chair he had been sitting in. All around the kitchen shattered plates, cups and other things fell to the floor.  
  
'Note to self: Tie down everything that's sharp and shiny as long as Duo's around.'  
  
Heero cautiously peeked out from under the desk to see if something else was going to come flying his way or if it was safe to get back up. Duo grinned a rather embarrassed grin at him and suddenly didn't seem all that upset anymore. Causing near death experiences for other people seemed to have at least 'some' positive effect.  
  
~Oops! Sorry 'bout that, I didn't mean to try and kill you or anything. It just kinda happened,~ Duo informed him with a sheepish smile.  
  
"Good to know," came the reply in a sarcastic voice.  
  
Heero sat back down on his chair and regarded Duo for some moments. The dead man looked back, an unspoken demand in his gaze. He still wanted an answer to his previous question. Heero sighed and reached his hands up to his neck where he opened the clasp of the silver chair that hung around it.  
  
He put the chain and pendant in front of him on he desk, all the time not losing eye contact with Duo. It was time to see if some things he had been musing about in the last hour were indeed true.  
  
"Is that what your little fit was about?"  
  
Duo nodded.  
  
"Are you going to tell me why you are here now?"  
  
~I already explained it to you,~ was the slightly confused answer.  
  
"That's not what I mean. You told me 'how' it was possible for you to be here. What I want to know is the reason for you being 'here' as in 'here with me'."  
  
Duo wasn't entirely sure how it had happened that now Heero was the one questioning 'him' instead of the other way around.  
  
~Your fault!~ he accused Heero, causing the other to raise an eyebrow. ~Don't give me that look! I don't care if that just sounded childish. You stole my cross and I want it back. And I want to know why you took it in the first place!~  
  
"You mean you actually came back from the dead because I took your cross? That's the real reason?" Heero asked rather amazed.  
  
~Yes! I can't die for real until I have my cross back because it means too much to me to just leave it. That whole Shinigami-thing is just my way to get it back. And I still want to know why you took it!~  
  
Heero ignored that last sentence.  
  
"Then take it back and die for real if that's what you want."  
  
~Why did you take it?~  
  
Heero sighed and shrugged.  
  
"Guess I didn't want to let you go completely," he told Duo without meeting the others eyes. "So do you want it back or not?"  
  
Duo regarded Heero for some time without answering. The other was still evading his eyes.  
  
~Yes, I want it back but I don't want to die... Idiot...~  
  
Heero finally looked up to meet his eyes, surprised, and saw that Duo had moved closer to him, a broad grin plastered on his face. Then the braided man bend forward after not even a second of hesitating and touched his lips to Heero's.  
  
Or that would have been what he had done. But right before they met, Duo's cross started to glow and the dead man was thrown back. They shot each other a startled look and then turned their eyes back to the cross that was still lying on the table, glowing in a dark red light.  
  
Suddenly the red light shot towards Duo and engulfed the man. Before anyone could react in any way, both the light and the cross were gone. And they had taken Duo with them.  
  
Heero stared at the place where Duo had been just moments ago. His thoughts were racing. Between him and Duo nearly kissing, finally, and Duo vanishing, he wasn't quite sure what to think.  
  
Something told him, that this time Duo hadn't vanished out of his own free will but had rather been forced to leave. And since the cross was gone, too, that could only mean that he wasn't going to come back.  
  
Duo had said that he needed the cross back before he could die for real.  
  
He had gotten it back.  
  
Then this meant that he had just now died?  
  
Forever?  
  
Heero didn't want to believe it but from the look of things this was just what had happened a few minutes ago. He had lost Duo to death again. And this time was even worse because now he somehow knew that Duo had returned his feelings for him.  
  
How the other man had found out was beyond Heero, but that didn't matter right now.  
  
What mattered was, that he knew he felt the same.  
  
What mattered was, that he had lost him.  
  
Again.  
  
- - - - -  
  
To be continued  
  
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O-kay... Done!  
  
But don't worry, there is a TBC at the end of this chap, which means that there'll be some kind of continuation. I won't tell you if it's going to be a happy end or not, though. *cackles*  
  
What? I have to keep ppl interested and cliffies are just the way to do that... ^_~  
  
Now what do you think will happen?  
  
a) Everything's just a dream  
  
b) Heero'll commit suicide to be with his not-really-lover  
  
c) Something completely different  
  
I'm not expecting you to answer that, but some kind of review would be nice, anyway! ^_~  
  
- Caffeine-high Banshee =^.^= 


End file.
